Word of Salvation – Vol. 21 No. 49 – August 1975

 

Lord’s Day 22 – Q&A 58

 

Sermon by Rev. A Nijhuis, B.D. on Lord’s Day 22 (2)

 

Silent Prayer

“Thou dost show me the path of life; in Thy presence there is fullness of joy, in Thy right hand are pleasures for evermore.”

Votum & Salutation

Singing: Psalter Hymnal 14

Prayer

Scripture Readings: Deut.30:11-20 & Matt.19:16-30

Text: Lord’s Day 22b (Question 58 only)

Singing: Psalter Hymnal 162:1,3,4 before Sermon

Prayer

Offering(s)

Singing: Psalter Hymnal 469:1,2

Apostles’ Creed

Benediction

Doxology: Psalter Hymnal 170:4

 

Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ,

This afternoon we are going to profess that which is stated in the last article of the Apostles’ Creed: “I believe the life everlasting.”

That is what you believe if you take the Word of God as your guide, and if you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ.

This last article is not just an end, the finish of The Creed.  It does not go out like a candle is snuffed.  It is not just a matter of a few words and then is over.

This last article brings us to the climax of our faith.  It takes us to the mountain-top from where we can look ahead into the future.  You may have noticed that almost all of the preceding articles deal with accomplished facts, which happened so long ago.  They speak about events which took place at the beginning of history or later when the Lord Jesus Christ came down on earth and lived and died among us.

That may be the reason why people often have the feeling that Christians are dealing with things of the past, and that they are lagging behind and are backward.  People think that we don’t understand our world with its problems.  How wrong they are.  I know of no one who is more advanced than a Christian who belongs to Christ Jesus and tries to live his faith according to the Word of God.

When we look at it correctly we may say that Christians are the most advanced people in the world.  They are not taken in by the things which happen today.  They are sent into the world, but they realise at the same time that the world passes away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever (1John 2:17).  There is more than our eyes see and our ears hear today.  Christians look also to the future and that future does not mean, just a few years ahead.  They look to a future after this life and after this world has passed away.

So Christians are not as stupid as they may look.  They even profess, “We believe the life eternal.”  They profess and believe this because their Saviour and Lord Himself said, “This is the will of My Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life.” (John 6:40).

Our faith is not only a matter of the past and of the present, but also for the future.  Actually it is our hope for the future that gives real meaning to the present and the past.

That is what we are going to listen to, in the last article of our undoubted Christian faith:

            I believe the life everlasting.

Our confession, the Heidelberg Catechism, brothers and sisters, young people, says as follows, “That, since I now feel in my heart the beginning of eternal joy, after this life I shall possess perfect bliss, such as eye has not seen nor ear heard, neither has entered into the heart of man – therein to praise God forever.”

I said already that our faith is a matter of the past, the present and the future.  Important facts happened in the past; just think of Jesus Christ and His work, on earth and in heaven; think of the history of His Church up until the present day, but don’t overlook the present time in which we are living.

The foundation has been laid and that foundation is sound and firm, even unshakable.  We really need a firm foundation to build on.  But a foundation is not enough.  We cannot stop with a nice foundation.  We have to build on it.  We are called to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.  In that way we become one with Him and we are going to listen to Him as our Master.  Therefore, we may look forward to the future.

I like to stress this just as the confession does.  It is striking that the answer to Q.58 speaks about the present when we expect to hear more about the future.  It says: “now” before it talks about the future.  Now, that is today, this Sunday.

There is a connection between this life and the life hereafter.  It is a pity that this connection is often overlooked, not only by unbelievers but also by Christians.  This life is important, very important.  If we forget this, it is no wonder that people talk about the church and church-members who are not up-to-date, and are blamed for only giving attention to the hereafter.

It is no wonder that we give the wrong impression when we limit ourselves to that far-away (?) future.

Our confession starts by talking about the “now” when, mind you, dealing with the life everlasting.  Strange, isn’t it?

No, it isn’t, because it is biblical.  The Lord Jesus Christ did not forget this world, did He?  He even left His heaven to come down to us, here on this earth; and after He had accomplished His work here He went away, back to His Father’s home, to continue His work.  We may not see that connection between here and hereafter – still it is there.  This article, “I believe the life everlasting”, is not just a kind of theory about the hereafter, where we hope to go later, which does not affect our life here.

That may be the deal in our minds.  We may excuse ourselves when we discover that so much is lacking in our Christian life and say, “Well, we are human aren’t we?”  Yes, we are human.  That is true, but if we mean that our life here does not change at all and that in spite of it all we shall go to heaven anyway, then we deceive ourselves.  The great change in our heart and life is not in the future, but it is here.  It is not true that we can remain the same sinner until we die and that we then suddenly become holy.  This view is a big lie.

Don’t get me wrong.  It is not a lie that we remain sinners until we die.  That is true even of the holiest man, while in this life, but it is a lie that a Christian remains the SAME sinner.

The rebirth makes him a new man and in his conversion he shows the fruit of that new beginning.  He starts a new life right here and now, a life by faith, a life in obedience to the Lord.  This life is in principle the same as life everlasting.  Everlasting life is not just a matter of the hereafter, but of here and now, brothers and sisters, young people.

The Lord Jesus Christ said, “This is eternal life that they know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ Whom Thou has sent.” (John 17:3).

Life in heaven is not a completely different life, but is in principle the same life, which we call a new life.

There is a difference between here and hereafter.  The difference is that the hereafter life is perfect while the ‘here’ life is imperfect.  There is a difference like the difference between a bud and a flower.  Where there is no bud there cannot flourish a flower; similarly where the beginning of eternal life is absent, no hope of eternal life can be cherished.

Those who are unwilling to walk in a new obedience and who turn away from Christ’s cross and from His commandments, and those who don’t know of a new life, a new heart, a new mind, but instead remain the same people; may hope for life eternal, but that hope is in vain.  Life everlasting is here already working in believers.

We profess: “That, since I NOW feel in my heart the BEGINNING of eternal joy, AFTER this life I shall possess PERFECT bliss…!”

This is the link between NOW and AFTER.  Now we have only the BEGINNING, but AFTER this life there is PERFECTION.  First there is the blossom, and afterwards the ripe fruit.

Eternal life starts from rebirth and shows itself in daily conversion, and flows into everlasting life.

We can also view this from God’s point of view.  “Those whom He has predestined He also called; and those whom He called He also justified and those whom He justified He also glorified.” (Rom.8:30).

The golden chain of salvation starts in heaven with the Lord; then it hangs down on earth; and finally it ends in heaven again (glorification).

The Catechism speaks clearly of the way in which life everlasting shows itself here and now, as something we feel in our heart – “the beginning of eternal joy…!” This is nicely expressed, but it may cause misunderstanding.  We could understand this as if it were a matter of FEELING only.  As a matter of fact, ETERNAL joy affects our feeling too, but that is not the only aspect of it.  We can also describe it as a new obedience.  What is the eternal joy of angels and of those who are in heaven?  Is it not that they may do the will of the Lord?  Heaven is a place of joy because sin is not there anymore.  All egotism and self-centredness has disappeared.

What makes this earth so gloomy and joyless is that we want to do our own will instead of the will of God.  The world may enjoy this, but a believer feels distressed about it.  He experiences a delight in the fact that his will is changed to please God.  That is the beginning of eternal joy.  Therefore he sings: “Thy law is my delight” and “Thy statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage” (Psalm 119:77,54).  This is the beginning of eternal joy.  This is not only a matter of feeling, but also of my will, and of my foot and of my hand, of my lips and of my purse, even of my entire life. (Psalter Hymnal 462).

On the new earth my everlasting life will be to will what God wills.  But here already this is the beginning of my joy.  O yes, it is only the beginning and what a small beginning it is.  There is always that sinful heart of mine.  Yet the beginning of joy is there.

That is the reason why we need that comfort.  The question is: “What comfort do you derive from the article of the life everlasting?”  Comfort implies sorrow.  It is the greatest sorrow of the children of God that they discover time and again how small that beginning of their obedience is and how little the growth of that new life is; and also how little joy they have in doing the will of their Father.  When they obey the commandments of the Lord, it is not always a matter of their heart!

They grow red with shame when they sing (Psalm 119; Psalter Hymnal 237)
            “Thy testimonies make me glad,
             for they are wealth beyond compare.
             Upon Thy precepts and Thy ways
             my heart will meditate with awe;
             Thy Word shall be my chief delight,
             And I will not forget Thy law.”

How we need that comfort of everlasting life.  It is a joy which is so immense, so glorious, so wonderful, so perfect, without pause and so complete.  Our struggling, and fighting against our sins, and praying that the Lord will grant us strength every day again to continue our battle and never to give up, and that we may reach that glorious future of everlasting life, is like looking up to a mountain top.

We know of sin and all the consequences of it, of death and war and of sickness and suffering.  We try to fight them, but there is no victory, no triumph.  We may spend millions and millions of dollars to postpone death, but people are dying every second in spite of all the modern medicines and all the skills of specialists.  What can we do about it?  What can we say to one another?  How can we comfort one another?

How else than by pointing to Jesus Christ Who said, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.”  Do you know what Jesus added to this wonderful word?  This: “Do you believe this?”  Do you?  Do you?

There is no other way than this.  You may try to forget about the reality of life and death.  You may close your eyes to it.  You may postpone your decision or turn away in anger.  It does not help!  You may try to follow the rule which says, “eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.”  It is useless.  What is your answer to Jesus’ question?  What is your comfort?  What is your hope?  And what is the basis of that hope?

Do you know what the Lord Jesus Christ has in store for His people, for sinners who are washed in Jesus’ blood?  It is, “that after this life I shall possess perfect bliss, such as eye has not seen nor ear has heard, neither has entered into the heart of man therein to praise God forever.”

The meaning of this description is to say that the glory of the life to come, for God’s people, is beyond our understanding.

The good news is far more than what our eyes can see and our ears can hear and our hearts can devise.

Science deals with what our eyes can see and philosophers have their theories and visions.  They have to limit themselves to these things.  They cannot go beyond.  They have to keep silent as soon as things are involved which cannot be seen and heard and dreamt of.

You will notice that the description (such as eye has not seen nor ear heard, neither has entered into the heart of man…) of eternal bliss is rather negative.  We cannot go beyond that.  When the Bible speaks about the future, it does this in symbolic language or in visions or by saying what it is not.

The apostle Peter speaks about “an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled and unfading.”  Human words cannot express the glory of that wonderful future.  It is inexpressible.

“Therein to praise God forever” is the only positive element.

Eternal life is not given to please ourselves and to enjoy ourselves, although it is a joy forever.  The aim is to praise God forever.  That was the aim of creation.  That is the purpose of our life.  The achievement of this aim will be reached in the future in life eternal.  All those who don’t want to praise the Lord will not feel at home there.  So you had better train here!  This life is a time of preparation.  Let us use that time and realise what the purpose of our life is.

It is not sufficient to say that the glory of God is the purpose of our life.  We should PRACTICE His will and serve Him in His Kingdom.  What do you believe about your future?  This question is the supreme test of your faith.  What is your hope?  What is your expectation when this short life is done?

Remember that he who believes in the Son has eternal life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God rests upon him.” (John 3:36).

Through Christ, the light of the future emits its beams on our path here.
            “God of life, O when shall I
             Come again to stand before Thee
             In Thy temple, and adore Thee.”

Amen.